Is it just me? -- Headlights

[Mr. Matté]

Is it just me or are the regular nighttime headlights on modern cars just a lot brighter, almost as bright as the high beams on some cars? I especially noticed this today as I was being tailgated (of course going about 10 over the signed limit) and the tailgater's headlights almost lit up my car's entire insides.

[Stratuscaster]

It's not just you.

[cpzilliacus]

Is it just me or are the regular nighttime headlights on modern cars just a lot brighter, almost as bright as the high beams on some cars? I especially noticed this today as I was being tailgated (of course going about 10 over the signed limit) and the tailgater's headlights almost lit up my car's entire insides.

My Dad (who tried to not drive at night) is really bothered by those lights.

[Alps]

Halogens are particularly bad. I also think sealed-beam replacements are getting brighter, because a lot of larger/older pickups and SUVs seem to be illuminating my mirrors too much.

[Brian556]

It's not just you. I now hate driving at night because of this. I especially hate how SUV and pickup lights are so high off the road that they shine right in your eyes.

[jakeroot]

Honest unscientific opinion: the older you get, the more sensitive your eyes become. Based on this, headlights aren't getting brighter, you all are just getting older. 

[US81]

Ahh, but halogens are a newer technology. Headlights are objectively getting brighter.

(Which does not necessarily preclude the idea that we get more sensitive as we age.)

[SteveG1988]

Ahh, but halogens are a newer technology. Headlights are objectively getting brighter.

(Which does not necessarily preclude the idea that we get more sensitive as we age.)

Halogens have been around since the 1960s, just not allowed until the 1980s in the USA.

What would fix this, harmonize our headlights with Europe, their lights produce less glare, all vehicles are required to have different head light aiming, depending on height, in the USA all vehicles are aimed identically, giving pickups an advantage.

US DOT Low Beam on a VW Jetta:


European Spec Low Beam:


DOT High:


E-Code High:


From the forum post i got these photos from:

First Impressions:

    One question I often asked beforehand was, "are E-codes brighter than the DOTs (H4 v. 9007 bulb)?" or "do E-codes throw more light out?" I would now answer these questions with "No, but they do use the light differently"
    Low Beam: E-code wins hands down. DOT headlights have no beam concentration in a given area (low and high are identical, high is just a brighter version of low). As advertised, the E-codes' low beam does a nice job of keeping light out of the opposing driver's eyes, while lighting the right edge of the road better (notice the row of RH trees you can see on the E-code low beam and not the DOT). Also, it's not a deceptive photo, the E-code low beams do seem brighter.
    High Beam: E-codes will take some getting used to. Look at the photos carefully and you can see that the E-code does get light further down the road; DOT actually has a slight deadspot in the center (look just before and past the mailbox for each). What is a little distracting to me is that the E-code high concentrates light at further distances and leaves a dimmer spot in the 30 or 40 feet in front of the car. I also sensed an odd tunnel effect that's hard to describe By the end of my test drive though, I was already getting used to it.

[1995hoo]

I think some of you are saying "halogens" to refer to "high-intensity discharge" headlights (often called HIDs; they often use xenon). They're not the same thing. HIDs are brighter and whiter, though they often have a bluish tint when you first turn them on.

The U.S. has lagged behind Europe on headlight technology. Until the 1980s, NHTSA mandated those stupid and inadequate sealed-beam boxy things. I have one car that uses those. I try not to drive it at night because the headlights are so pathetic compared to modern ones.

One reason pop-up headlights were common in the 1980s but faded away was the NHTSA regulations about type of lights. The pop-ups allowed for more aerodynamic styling. Once NHTSA allowed halogens, carmakers had more flexibility and didn't need to use pop-up lights to achieve the same ends.

[cjk374]

My '83 Pontiac Grand Prix has the boxy halogen type lights.  My low beams fool alot of oncoming drivers into thinking I have my high beams on.  When they bright-light me, they end up getting 2 more lights on in their face.  My low-beams really do light up the countryside, but I believe it may be how they are adjusted.

[vdeane]

Honest unscientific opinion: the older you get, the more sensitive your eyes become. Based on this, headlights aren't getting brighter, you all are just getting older. 

I'm 23 and find that more cars now than a few years ago have headlights bright enough to blind me.

[vtk]

The tv commercials for Silverstar headlights day something like "see farther, see brighter" and i say to that "and blind more oncoming drivers"

[Pete from Boston]

On a related note, I feel like far fewer people pay attention to whether their high beams are on, or to anyone trying to alert them of this. However, this probably has as much to do with cell phone use as anything else

[SteveG1988]

The tv commercials for Silverstar headlights day something like "see farther, see brighter" and i say to that "and blind more oncoming drivers"

The Silverstar headlights were actually part of a class action lawsuit.

[mtantillo]

I really don't like how the lights are aimed in such a way as to really blind you if you are approaching at the crest of a hill, or if you are waiting at a light where the opposite approach is on an uphill grade.

Otherwise, the worst ones are the biggest SUVs, especially the ones on lift kits.

[J N Winkler]

When I drive at night, I often feel the headlights I see that I actually like (low to the ground, don't dazzle me) are very much in the minority.  I drive a 20-year-old compact that has a lower roofline than modern compacts, so I find even correctly adjusted headlamps on crossover SUVs objectionable.

This said, here is the regulatory picture:

*  Factory beam aim and headlamp housing design--Subject to type approval

*  Actual beam aim--Regulated by law, but rarely if ever enforced

*  Power rating and lumen output of headlamp light sources--Not regulated

I think my first car (a 1978 Chevrolet) had ordinary sealed-beam headlamps (not halogens) rated for 35 W.  I forget the rating for the halogen bulbs in my next car, a 1986 Maxima, but the 1994 car I currently drive uses 55 W halogen bulbs.  Nowadays it is pretty easy to find bulbs rated for 90 W or even 100 W, which is far too much.

Partly for this reason, I try to avoid driving at night except during a two-week period centered on the full moon, when the much greater ambient light level allows the eyes to follow a broad scanning pattern, which helps offset headlamp glare and prevent dazzle.